The Plant House at Hidcote

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The Plant House in 1930. It was demolished in 1954.


Hidcote Manor Garden is one of the most famous and influential 20th Century gardens in Europe. At it's centennial a large sum of money was raised to renew and rebuild some of the features in the original garden that were in need of repair or were lost over time. One of these features was the Plant House which was demolished in 1954 after an exceptionally bitter winter had wiped out the plant collection. It has now been resurrected to provide winter protection for a collection of semi-tropical plants while in summer when the glazed panels are removed it becomes an airy arcade for visitors and many of the plants spill out into the adjacent Lily Garden.
When we visited Hidcote this September some of our party were disappointed with the appearance of many of the gardens, they seemed rather shabby and down at heel, and so it was a special pleasure to find the plant house in great shape with colourful borders of annuals glowing in the Autumn light.


Plant House with border of Verbena bonariensis, Cosmos sulphuereus and Nicotiana 'Lime Green'.


The perimeter of the Lily Pond has large tropical plants in pots spilling out from the Plant House in the Summer.


The entrance to the Plant House has tables of tender plants .


Aeonium tabuliforme.

Comments

Is the Wiz said…
Bit surprised to hear that Hidcote was looking less than immaculate, but also a touch of schadenfreude if I'm honest!
November 15, 2011 at 10:45 AM
Barry Parker said…
Hi Isobel,

I might be a little jaded, but I have to say that Hidcote did not come up to the standard of Powis Castle and Sissinghurst, two gardens that we also visited in September. Perhaps they were overwhelmed by all the renovation going on there at the moment?
November 15, 2011 at 5:51 PM
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